Strollerderby : pregnant man

Baby Bikini and Pregnant Man Top 2008 Weird News List

Brett Singer — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

About.com has posted their list of their list of 2008's Top Weird News Stories. Some are parenting/kid related, and some don't seem all that weird, frankly. Let's take a look:

10. Thomas Beatie, the so-called pregnant man

Yep – I guess that qualifies as Weird News. Personally I always questioned what the health risks were of someone like Beatie giving birth – lots of hormones and other drugs are involved in a sex change operation, right? Might that not do something bizarre to your insides? I mean, Beatie can do whatever he/she likes with his/her body but are there health risks to the children that he/she gives birth to? Also, "pregnant man" isn't quite accurate. But it does make for a good headline.

Another weird item that Wolf mentions which I hadn't heard of was the 3rd grader who got suspended for getting high in school – from sniffing a Sharpie. If sniffing markers to get high is wrong, I don't want to be right! Just kidding. We all know writing implements are a gateway drug.

6. Dumbest Ideas: The Baby Bikini, Condom Measuring Tape, GPS Lingerie

When I first saw the words "baby bikini" I thought maybe we had another Heelarious on our hands. But no, it's just a two-piece baby bathing suit. It doesn't seem all that bad, actually. The high heels for infants were, in my view, much dopier. And I’m guessing the author, Buck Wolf, hasn't seen the Baby Announcement Panties Packed in a Fake Ice Cream Container. The GPS Lingerie was definitely dumb, and if they sell more than 10 of the condoms with measuring tape, I'll be shocked. But the Baby Bikini didn't really register that high on the weird scale for me. Maybe I'm jaded.

What do you think? Baby bikini – weird or not?

Image/Source: About.com

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Pregnant Man Receiving Death Threats

Cole Gamble — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:00:00 GMT

I guess you could file this under, “Sometimes Human Beings Are Miserable Creatures.” As you probably know, Oregon’s (my neck of the woods) Thomas Beatie, A.K.A The Pregnant Man, is pregnant again. And for this grievous offense, some people want him dead…

Not that death threats are the only troubles Beatie and his wife Nancy have weathered. Of course you have the mockery of kooks, regular citizens and late night talk show hosts. Then you have FOX News. During Beatie’s first pregnancy, a FOX News commentator declared Beatie’s child would be an “Ewok Baby” and that it would be born with a “third eye.” Yep, those words from the reputable, “Fair and Balanced,” journalistic institution that is FOX News.

People are bound to find Beatie and his life weird, perhaps gross, maybe even go so far as to deem it “wrong.” I don’t begrudge regular people for making water cooler talk out of this person’s life; we’re all a little catty deep down. And I’ll admit he played a part in stepping into the spotlight. But death threats? I don’t get why who he is and how he lives his life could make anyone that mad, why they find it so necessary to wipe out all that is unique and interesting about this world. Then again, there’s a lot I don’t get. I was taught to believe this was a country of individuality, where everyone is free, nay, encouraged to make their own path. So if somebody decides to live a certain way and it doesn’t hurt anyone, who the hell cares?

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Daddy’s Pregnant…AGAIN!

SunnyChanel — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:05:00 GMT

My first reaction to the news that Thomas Beatie, the infamous “pregnant man”, is knocked up again isn’t a kneejerk reaction to the oddity of the situation of a “man” being preggers. Nope, I’m more shocked that he is pregnant again after just giving birth to daughter Susan 4 ½ months ago. Thomas shared the news in an exclusive interview Barabara Walters for 20/20 entitled “What is a Man, What is a Woman, Journey of a Pregnant Man” which will air Friday at 10 p.m ET.

Sure, Thomas looks like a man, identifies himself as a man but Thomas is still biologically a woman, hence the whole being able to get pregnant thing. After the birth of his first daughter, Thomas didn’t go back on the testosterone therapy he was participating in after the birth of his daughter so he would be able to get preggers with number 2, apparently sooner than later. Thomas is currently in his first trimester and the baby is due June 22nd. The family also discusses the birth of daughter Susan. Thomas was in labor for 40 hours and partner Nancy Beatie cut the umbilical cord.

Via: ABC News

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1st Pictures of Pregnant Man's Baby

Cole Gamble — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:00:00 GMT

Here is Thomas beatie with his baby daughter Susan Juliette, who weighed 9 lbs., 5 oz., and was born on June 29 at 8:55 p.m

This photo comes courtesy of hollywoodgrind.com, from a blogger who is clearly not that stoked about this development. From that blog:

This baby will grow up believing biological fathers don’t matter in a child’s life. How would mothers feel if fathers said mothers don’t matter in a child’s life?

Both biological parents matter to children. In situations like this, where a person can choose to cut out the father because they can’t have a child with their same-sex partner, then they should opt not to have a child at all. I don’t believe sperm banks are a good idea for anyone to use, because the child never knows the father, and doesn’t even have the choice to know the father.

You know what? Who gives a rat's ass? Life goes on and it evolves. I can't wait until our children's children look back and say, "grandpa, why did anyone give a damn who was raising the baby as long as it was loved?"

And all I will be able to say is, "Well, sometimes it takes people a long time to grow up. Like generations."

"Pregnant Man" Beattie Loves the Limelight

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"Pregnant Man" Beattie Loves the Limelight

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 13:50:00 GMT

I am becoming increasingly convinced that Thomas Beattie (better known as the “pregnant man”) is a bit of a publicity whore. This isn’t necessarily a problem, so long as the publicity he seeks does more good than harm for the transgender community—and for his daughter, born on June 29.

In the latest Beattie media frenzy, September Films, a London firm, has beat out four other production companies in winning the rights to make a documentary telling Beattie’s story. The hourlong film will air on Channel 4, with rights to the film licensed globally. The Discovery Channel is currently seeking exclusive U.S. rights.

With his Oprah appearance, his memoir-in-progress (including tales of participating in beauty pageants in his youth), and now this film, Beattie seems keen on maintaining a large spot in the limelight. This is certainly not unusual in these days of reality TV and "It Happened to Me" bestsellers, but it becomes a bit more complicated when there is a child involved. I just hope the widespread publicity of Beattie’s unusual situation helps establish more tolerance for transgender folks and their children, not more hatred.

Photo: livenews.com

Should Parents Delay Puberty for Transgender Children?

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Thu, 15 May 2008 18:00:00 GMT

In the aftermath of media hype about pregnant transgender man Thomas Beattie—much of which threatened to return the “freak” label to the trans community—NPR has run a fascinating story that explains gender identity disorder from the viewpoint of a family living through it.

According to Danielle and Robert (last names were omitted), from the time their son was two-years-old, he insisted on dressing like a girl. From the time he was old enough to talk, he told his parents, “I’m a girl.” Throughout elementary school, he frequently had temper outbursts so severe that his parents sought psychiatric help. Finally, at age 10, he was diagnosed with gender identity disorder, a label that came as a relief to his parents, who could finally stop asking themselves, “What have we done to make this child so unhappy?” And, sure enough, as soon as Danielle and Robert allowed their son to live as a girl, the fights and the tantrums stopped.

The gender identity disorder diagnosis also allowed Danielle and Robert to consider options that were not available only four years ago. By taking monthly injections of medication that stops the body from releasing sex hormones, transgender children are able to postpone puberty, while continuing to grow taller. Then, at around age 16, they may decide to transition to the opposite gender by taking either estrogen or testosterone. By the time they are fully developed adults, they are physically almost indistinguishable from the gender with which they identify.

It probably won’t come as a shock that this is a very controversial program. Not only does taking estrogen or testosterone before puberty cause infertility, but some specialists believe that children cannot know with certainty whether or not they want to live as the opposite sex.

But Danielle and Robert do not see this as a choice for their child, now called Violet. In response to people who say Violet is too young to know that he wants to be a girl, Robert says, “Well, when did you know you were a girl? When did I know I was a boy? I knew my whole life, I can’t tell you exactly when, but it wasn’t like I was 10 and realized, ‘Oh gee, I must be a boy!’”

I know many liberal-minded people who do not “believe in” being transgender—that is, they do not believe there is a biological basis for the desire to live as the opposite sex. What do you folks think of Danielle and Robert’s story?

Image: prunellavulgaris.wordpress.com

Trans Community Worries About “Pregnant Man” Bad Press

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Tue, 06 May 2008 03:02:00 GMT

When Oprah gets involved, people get famous. And in the case of transgender man Thomas Beattie, the results of this fame are, so far, neither fortune nor glory. Since Beattie first wrote about his unorthodox decision to stop taking testosterone and become pregnant because his wife is unable to carry a child, the media has (unsurprisingly) had a field day with what quickly became dubbed the “pregnant man” story. The Oprah Winfrey Show, the BBC, Good Morning America, and People are only a few of the mainstream outlets to cover Beattie's pregnancy.

According to an update from The Advocate—the LGBT magazine that broke Beattie’s story—not everyone in the transgender community is pleased with Beattie’s decision to go public. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to Beattie, who said that he contacted several transgender organizations before writing a first-person account of his decision to carry a child in The Advocate. Half of the organizations never responded, and most of the others urged him to stay out of the limelight, worrying that publicity would only harm the Beattie family and the transgender community at large.

Specifically, many trans activists worry that Beattie’s unusual story will cause an already less than tolerant public to label all transgender people “freaks” and “disgusting,” two terms that flooded the blogosphere in the wake of Beattie’s story. (The comments on my first article about Beattie’s pregnancy are a case in point.) Even more concerning are fears that this media frenzy could be used to fuel legislation curbing transgender rights, just as many states passed anti-gay marriage legislation after the Massachusetts supreme court upheld gays’ right to marry.

On the other hand, some LGBT activists applaud Beattie’s decision to stretch the limits of the public’s tolerance. As Beattie wrote in the Advocate—and Oprah quoted to a supportive studio audience—“[O]ur situation ultimately will ask everyone to embrace the gamut of human possibility and to define for themselves what is normal.”

While I am supportive of Beattie’s optimism that his story will open the public’s eyes to the many forms a healthy, loving family can take, I fear that this shift in perspective is unlikely to happen fast enough to shield his child from discrimination throughout his or her youth. With many bloggers expressing not only disgust but violent hatred for Beattie and his unborn child, I’m afraid we’ve got a long way to go.

Photo: ABC News

Pregnancy: It's Not Just for Women Anymore

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 15:47:00 GMT

An Oregon man has publicly announced that he is five months pregnant with a healthy baby girl. So all of those hypothetical “If men could get pregnant….” statements may get practically tested after all--although somehow I don’t think abortion is going to become a sacrament or maternity leave is going to last for two years for the sake of Thomas Beattie, a transgender man who had to go through nearly ten doctors before he found one who was willing to handle his highly unusual case.

I must admit that when I first heard about Beattie’s pregnancy claims on ABC, I feared for the reputations of transgender people everywhere: a man gets gender reassignment surgery, then gets artificially inseminated and broadcasts it on the Internet? Plus, according to ABC, a few of Beattie's neighbors were convinced the whole thing was a hoax. “I saw him the other day, and he didn’t look pregnant,” one said. (As I later learned, my concern about Beattie's outspokenness was shared by some in the trans community.)

But after reading Beattie’s moving first-person account published in The Advocate, I had a very different take. ABC failed to mention that Beattie’s wife is unable to carry a child, making their decision to have Beattie be the biological mother understandable. Furthermore, Beattie explains the logistics of his situation in such a way that it's clear this will be a very wanted baby. He has always identified as a man, and years ago underwent chest reconstruction surgery and began taking testosterone to appear outwardly as one. But he kept his female reproductive organs, so in order to become pregnant, all he needed to do was stop his testosterone injections. Not that he wanted to start getting PMS and cramps again, but hey, we all make sacrifices for our offspring.